


Golden

by Racat10



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: A/B/O, Alpha Shiro (Voltron), Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alpha/Omega, Also non-con mentions in Cp. 3, Alternate Universe - Human, Fluff, Keith is just trying to live, M/M, Omega Keith (Voltron), Prostitution, Romance, Shiro is a science writer, Smut, Some non-con groping in Cp. 3 but it's easily skipped, a/b/o dynamics, eventually smut, ever seen pretty woman? Kind of like that I guess but a little more fucked up
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-01
Updated: 2018-02-26
Packaged: 2019-02-09 01:05:14
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 17,968
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12876885
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Racat10/pseuds/Racat10
Summary: “I mean, it’s for the Golden brothel,” Allura reasoned, “It’s not like you’re running off to an STD fest.”“But it’s still a brothel, isn’t it?” Shiro asked, reasoning more with himself than the others.“The Golden brothel,” Allura said, “it’s where the elite go to avoid public sex scandals. I cannot approve of you going, but I can’t really disapprove either. It’s not uncommon for single alphas to seek omegas from places like that. The omegas there must lead normal lives—it’s just work to them.”“I guess I’ll think about it.” Shiro concluded, staring down at the certificate in hand and scratching his head.





	1. 21

**Author's Note:**

> Boy oh boy. This is just an intro. It only gets more romantic and eventually smuttier from here. :3c
> 
> Follow me on stuff! 
> 
> If you want to make fic requests, find me on tumblr @InhaleAss
> 
> If you wanna see my face to put an author to the fic, find me in insta @DankMemeKing
> 
> If you wanna see weird shit about my life and/or videos of my lizard, find me on snap @Racat1010

Shiro stared at the coffee table ahead of him. He could hardly see the reflective surface for the expanse of neatly wrapped gifts, pieces of wrapping paper, and torn boxes strewn all across it. He had been opening presents for nearly an hour now, from distant relatives and followers alike. In this forty-some minutes, he would open all the gifts, placing aside letter after letter, promising himself he would read them as soon as he had the time. 

Of course, he opened the ones he cared for least first. The distant relatives, whom he saw only on particularly important holidays or weddings, sent their best wishes and overly-expensive gifts. One that struck him particularly extravagant was a set of diamond encrusted eating utensils, paired with antique looking designer plates and bowls. He knew these relatives were only looking to be in him and his parents’ good graces—after all, they were the most powerful of the family, and his distant relatives would all but die to be part of their fame. 

Those who considered themselves fans of his sent in letters more than anything. There were, of course, several gifts, which Shiro happily opened. Among these gifts were books, basic knickknacks, and cute collectible items. Knowing people were following him and his writing made him beam, happy to have such a dedicated following for his articles on StarBoard as well as his narrative stories. He was significantly more moved and appreciative of these few gifts than he was of those his relatives sent. 

Luckily, Shiro had a group of only his closest friends present through what could only be described as the most boring part of having a birthday. They kept the mood light and the jokes rolling – especially Lance, who couldn’t get over the fact that Shiro was now twenty-one years old and made jokes at his expense at any given opportunity.

Now, he had only the gifts from these friends to open.

“Any order I need to go in?” Shiro asked, staring the group down from his position in the middle of the couch. 

“I don’t believe it matters,” piped Allura’s soft voice from Shiro’s right.

“In that case, I’ll open yours first.” Shiro decided, leaning down to grab a soft blue, sparkling bag situated beside the table. It had always been a game amongst the group to never write names on gifts and make each other guess who got what gift.

“Was is that obvious?” Allura asked, leaning back and crossing her legs.

“You’re the only one here besides Lance who would use a glittery bag,” he said, “And besides, Lance’s gift is the one with the golden sparkles on the other side of the table.”

“Are we really that predictable?” Lance asked, pouting and looking up at Shiro from his own spot sitting cross-legged on the floor.

Shiro only laughed. He returned his attention to Allura’s present, placing it in his lap. It was heavy, medium-sized. He couldn’t help but wonder what Allura could have picked out that would be so heavy. She tended to stick to smaller, keepsake gifts that meant something special. He would figure it out soon enough, and he was sure it would fit the aesthetic of all her other gifts. He removed the contents of the bag and carefully unwrapped the present from the tissue paper. 

Specks of bronze began to shine through, until in his hands were on the gift alone – a typewriter. It appeared to be new, with a beautiful shine to the carefully crafted metal. The paper letters adorning the keys were perfectly aligned in a beautiful font whose name he couldn’t quite remember, with perfectly round and clear material covering and protecting the delicate paper beneath it. He moved the typewriter around in his hands, looking to see small, deep purple stones of decoration on the sides and watching as the elegantly crafted item shone in the light streaming down from above.

“The purple stones are amethysts,” Allura said, “I know purple is your favorite color.”

Shiro hadn’t even noticed that his jaw was agape as he looked over his new type-writer. The gift was beyond thoughtful. It was just like Allura to pick out such a beautiful and well thought out present. 

“Where did you even find this?” was all he could manage to ask.

“I had it especially made,” she explained, returning to her regularly straight posture, “I was looking for them on the market but I couldn’t find one nearly as beautiful as I had imagined. So, I just had it made instead.”

A smile swept across Allura’s smooth face, knowing she had done well. It had to have been more expensive than any of the other gifts he had gotten up until then, but Allura always spent hundreds if not thousands of dollars on gifts for her friends. After all, her father was King Alfor and her mother was the CEO of the leading fashion retailer in the country. It wasn’t often that two alphas fell in love, but it just so happened to be the case with Allura’s parents. It was no wonder that she, too was an alpha—it was quite literally in her blood.

“Damn, Allura, how are we supposed to live up to that?” asked Matt, motioning his hands towards the type-writer. He had somehow managed to end up on the floor beside Lance, though he had previously been sitting on the couch opposing the one Shiro, Allura, and Pidge sat on. 

“You two know I have furniture, right?” Shiro asked, staring back and forth between both of them.

“It’s not the same,” Lance whined jokingly.

“Dramatic as always,” Hunk observed. 

Unlike Lance and Matt, Hunk actually sat on the sofa, resting his elbows on either thigh and clasping his hands together. 

Shiro turned his attention back to Allura, thanking her for the gift.

He knew it would only be downhill from there. He knew that everyone else had either gotten him something as a gag that he would never use, or something purposely ridiculous that he would secretly use.

“Open mine next,” Pidge said, “It’s the only other gift that won’t make you roll your eyes.”

Shiro looked at the table and immediately grabbed the box wrapped in a repeating pattern of a sad looking frog. 

“Meme paper,” Shiro observed, trying not to laugh.

Giggles arose from across the room. 

“This paper is very important to me,” Pidge joked, “I relate to this frog on a spiritual and emotional level.”

The giggles died down as Shiro ripped at the paper. Inside was a fanciful picture frame, matching the coloration of the type-writer’s metal near perfectly. In the frame was the picture they all took together the day he, Matt, and Allura graduated from Anton Academy. He couldn’t help but recount his first day there. 

He had already been friends with Matt and Allura for years, and they were overjoyed to be attending school together. Unlike traditional universities or academies, entrance to Anton begins with what would otherwise be considered one’s eleventh year of high school. It was truly a school for the elite, though there was no question as to his or any of his friends’ acceptance. His father was the dean, ensuring spots for any of Shiro’s friends. Allura and Matt would have no doubt still been accepted even if they had not known Shiro. They both came from highly influential families, which alone would have guaranteed their place at Anton. Allura came from politics of the Royal Family, and Matt from a family of highly famous scientists. So, it came as no shock when Allura attended for political science and history, with Matt studying robotics and astrophysics.

Hunk and Lance were still attending, hardly over halfway through the 4-year program. Hunk was studying engineering and astrophysics, hoping to work with his father in building spacecrafts for exploration outside of the solar system. Lance was studying general physics, hoping to eventually become a professor at Anton in the field.

Lance came from a large family, like most families headed by an alpha and an omega. His father, the alpha, was a world-renowned lawyer. His mother was a stay-at-home omega, caring for him and his 5 siblings. He was the second to oldest, his older brother an alpha with three extra years under his belt.

Pidge was in her first year at Anton, studying in the same field as her brother with an added major in gender studies. Her and Matt’s parents were alpha and beta, with a long heritage of scientists stretching back over a century. Their mother, the alpha, was well known for her studies in genetics, making connections between the sexual nature of alphas, betas, and omegas to not only sex chromosomes, but chromosomes 4 and 7 as well. Based on her current studies, Pidge was extremely likely to be an alpha. At 16, it wouldn’t take long before second puberty struck and she found her place for sure. 

Their father was well known in making advanced prosthetics for humans and animals alike. With designs from Pidge and Matt, he sculpted Shiro’s prosthetic flawlessly and beautifully, aligning the arm to Shiro’s neural connections and making it function much like a human arm.

“Do you like it?” Pidge asked, ripping Shiro from his thoughts. 

“I absolutely love it,” he responded, “It’s gorgeous.”

“There’s something taped to the back,” she said, winking devilishly.

“Batteries?” He asked quizzically.

Lance, Matt, and Hunk began laughing their asses off almost immediately, and Allura rolled her eyes and looked away, trying not to laugh herself.

“Sh-should I be worried?” Shiro asked, looking from face to face.

“Just keep opening shit,” Matt managed to say through the laughter.

So, he did. He reached out and grabbed Lance’s gift, causing the dying laughter to erupt again. He opened the bag to find a bright pink vibrator and caramel flavored lube. 

“E-excite your HOLE?” Shiro read, laughing, “Batteries not included.”

The laughter picked up as loud as ever, even Allura covering her mouth in giggles.

“This is so fucked up,” Shiro said slowly and dramatically, trying to force away his smile.

“You may be an alpha, but you’ll meet your omega someday,” Lance said with a wink.

“This is the most ridiculous gift I’ve ever gotten,” said Shiro.

“Just wait…” Hunk and Matt said simultaneously, pushing the two unopened gifts towards him.

“This one is horribly wrapped,” Shiro began, grabbing a large box wrapped in green paper. He stared at Matt and waited for a confession before opening it.

“Yes, it’s mine,” Matt said, “and no, I can’t wrap presents. Just open the damn thing.”

This gift followed the same pattern as Lance’s. Laughter, followed by a worried Shiro unsure of if he really wanted to know the contents of the package. 

He stared down at the box once all the wrapping paper was off. He wasn’t sure that it would top the obscure-factor of Lance’s gift, but hell if it didn’t…

“Mrs. Tentacles Galactic blow-up Doll,” Shiro read aloud in a monotonous voice, prompting yet another eruption of laughter. The doll was bright green and had 2, lifeless eyes with puckered red lips.

“Thanks,” Shiro said, looking at Matt’s wide smile, “I hate it!”

“I expect to see her blown up and living in her own room by next week,” Matt said.

“You fuckin’ wish,” Pidge laughed.

“Does it get worse?” Shiro asked, looking at Hunk.

“It depends,” Hunk responded.

“On what?” Shiro asked.

“How willing you are to go to the city to pick it up,” he responded.

Shiro grabbed the final gift in curiosity. It was a small bag with no gift wrap. He reached inside and pulled out a piece of glossy paper. 

“It’s a certificate for a damn omega brothel,” he said.

“I gave the okay,” Lance said, cupping his hand around his mouth dramatically and raising his head to make his voice especially loud.

“Just because you’re an omega doesn’t mean you can okay omega prostitution.” Shiro asserted.

“I disagree,” he said. “I’d bang an alpha if I knew there were no strings attached.

“And you’re the only single alpha I know,” Hunk said.

“Untrue,” Allura said, “I broke up with Lotor over a month ago.”

“Why were you even with him, an alpha, when I, Lance, an omega, am always here and flirting with you?” Lance questioned.

“Because you use too many commas when you speak,” Allura jabbed.

“Ouch,” Lance responded.

“You don’t have to use it,” Hunk said, returning the attention to the gift, “I threw $300 in there too just because Pidge stole my present idea.”

“Lies!” Pidge exclaimed, pointing her finger at him.

“I mean, it’s for the Golden brothel,” Allura reasoned, “It’s not like you’re running off to an STD-fest.”

“But it’s still a brothel, isn’t it?” Shiro asked, reasoning more with himself than the others.

“The Golden brothel,” Allura said, “I've heard it’s where the elite goes to avoid public sex scandals. I cannot approve of you going, but I can’t really disapprove either. It’s not uncommon for single alphas to seek omegas from places like that. The omegas there must lead normal lives—it’s just work to them, right?”

“I guess... I’ll think about it.” Shiro concluded, staring down at the certificate in hand and scratching his head.

-

“Don’t fucking touch me,” Keith snarled, struggling against the two men holding either of his arms. He kicked and thrashed in attempts to free himself from the tight grip.

“What the hell do we do with him?” one man asked, turning to face the other.

“Hell, I think we might have to send him up to the Golden place,” he replied.

“Won’t that be a bit risky?” the first asked, staring down at the thrashing omega in their grip.

“He won’t listen to a damn thing and he tried to fight his first customer. We had to give him a full refund!”

“If people find out he doesn’t want to be here, we’ll be ruined.” 

“Then we don’t really have a choice, do we?”

“Fine. Call the delivery guy and tell him what’s up. He’ll ship out tomorrow.”

“I won’t ship anywhere, you bastards!” Keith yelled, tossing his head and attempting to shift his body out of grip.

They lifted him up almost effortlessly, carrying him off and tossing him in a padded room. He went silent as he hit the floor, brooding to himself and thinking out all the ways he could escape. 

“On second thought, let’s get him out of here tonight,” the first man said, “We don’t want him leaving his scent in this place for too long.”

They turned and walked away, down the long corridor and out of the area, leaving Keith alone with his thoughts.

“I’m not a fucking object,” he spat to himself. 

He thought long and hard about how he ended up here. On the run for almost two years. No family to fall back on. Nowhere to go or live or be. 

It was almost as if he didn’t even exist. A nameless shadow walking amongst a crowd of lights, a silhouette of nonexistence which shone on the ground. What was he to do? Comply and prostitute himself for a living, just to give his life some meaning? The thought made him want to be sick. Could he simply go on, fighting for the rest of his life until he breaks or becomes too much for them to deal with? He had plenty of fight in him, but he wasn’t sure he had the will to fight for the rest of his life. Could he escape? Even if he did, he would just go back to living on the streets again. Regardless of his next move, it all just seemed pointless. 

“There’s no fucking use in planning anything,” he thought, “I’ll just have to see what happens.”

He fought off tears as he laid on the ground, curling up.

“Such a cry-baby,” he scoffed to himself, unable to stop the tears from welling in his eyes. He shut them tight, swallowing hard and nestling his head the best he could on the ground. He’d figure something out tomorrow. 

He was going to be shipped off to another brothel, probably in an hour or so. There was no use in sleeping now.

He shut his eyes, just to block out the lights cascading through the glass pane on the door. Something had to change. He had to change. He had to either adapt or get out—and both came with consequences which made him cringe in discomfort. 

What the hell was he supposed to do?


	2. 11:44

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shiro builds up the courage to use his certificate.
> 
> Keith builds up the courage to wear a thong.

Shiro stared down at the certificate in his hand. His head was resting on the steering wheel, the leather cool against his forehead. In contrast, he felt warm air seeping through the vents onto the back of his neck and flushed cheeks. He swallowed hard before letting out a long sigh. Was he really doing this?

“I just need to get out of the car and go inside,” he whispered, “I just need to do it.”

He glared at the clock. It was almost midnight. He tilted his head back and sighed again, placing his prosthetic arm over his forehead and shutting his eyes. He’d been sitting in his vehicle for the greater of 20 minutes, trying to build up the courage to get the hell in there.

“It’s natural,” he told himself, “I have… needs.” 

And, he was right. Like any other alpha, he craved the closeness and rawness that sex brought. He biologically desired someone beneath him, someone he could make love and bond to all while making them an important part of his life. But at the same time, he also craved someone he could fuck into submission. Someone he could control for the night and leave the next morning without giving it a second thought. At the most basic level, his body demanded sex.

Of course, alphas had their mating cycles too. But unlike the omega process of going into heat, alphas just felt… different. Their natural cravings would intensify, telling their body to go fuck something until babies happened. Alphas in relationships would always talk about how much stronger the desire got the more they fell in love with their partner, and it was common knowledge that a major spike in hormones was a milestone in a relationship; It meant an alpha was falling in love. 

Shiro had never quite gotten to that point, though he had shown a slight interest in several women over the years. His first relationship was in seventh grade. A young girl, Dorothy, had given him a fancy set of mechanical pencils as a gift. They dated for a month until she danced with someone else at the Winter Formal, making Shiro cry in the bathroom for an hour until Matt literally dragged him out and called Shiro’s dad to come pick him up. 

His first year at Anton, he was placed in several classes with a girl named Elizabeth. They talked a bit, made out a bit, and that was the end of that. They were together for 3 months before Shiro came into his heritage as an alpha. Being a newly developed alpha, he wasn’t entirely sure what desires he was supposed to be feeling. All he knew was that he felt nothing for Elizabeth. 

His second year, he began to better understand what sorts of feelings he was supposed to have for partners when he encountered an upperclassman beta named Aurora. A few weeks in, they went to a party together, had a few drinks, and wound up in the host’s bedroom with lights, as well as clothes, completely off. The next morning, Shiro realized a little too late that the emotional bond wasn’t as strong as he thought it was. The only thing he really craved was being in a relationship, not so much being in a relationship with Aurora. 

His third year, he made the same mistake with Sadie, Caroline, and Stephanie.

In his last year, he decided to abstain from any sort of sex until he felt an actual connection with someone. The desire for sex was there, but it was easily cared for with a dirty magazine or two.

Now, nearly two years after making his vow of abstinence, he was going to break it by hooking up with a total stranger.

“Okay,” he told himself sternly, moving both arms to his side and sitting up straight, “No more stalling.”

-

Keith’s eyes shot open and he frantically looked around the room, bobbing his eyes and head around in attempts to take in the sights around him. He had awoken as if a shockwave had cascaded throughout his entire body, forcing him to rise in a panic. He realized almost immediately that he had been moved in his sleep. Did he even fall asleep? He couldn’t remember. He retained only the memories of curling up on the floor and trying not to cry. But that was as far as his mind could stretch. 

For several weeks, he had lived in an empty, padded, and dimmed room with rips on the wall and countless stains on the floor. Now, he was laying on a soft bed in the middle of neat, white room. There was no doubt about it—they had transferred him to the other brothel.

There was no other furniture in the room besides a built-in closet which sank into the wall right of the bed. The bed itself had white silk sheets and a quilted comforter to match. Keith mindlessly cascaded his right hand across the silk pillowcase where his head previously rested. It was soft and inviting; warm from where his head had been resting for the time in which he slept.

His panic was reignited as motion caught his eye. He whipped his head around and watched as his door swung open. A large man dressed in gold and white stepped forward, staring down at a clipboard in hand.

“Says here you’re unruly,” he said in a deep, monotonous voice as he tapped his pen against the wood, “Step outside the room please, but strip down and change your clothes first.”

He motioned to the closet with a nod and began to walk out.

“Why?” Keith asked.

“We have a customer,” the man replied, whipping his head back around to face Keith.

“Fuck that,” Keith scowled, “You can’t make me have sex with anyone.”

“Christ kid,” the man said with a sigh, “Just get your ass outside for the showing. All you got to do is stand there.”

“What if I don’t want to?”

“Then nothing,” the man explained, “You’ll stay in this room for the rest of your life and eventually die of thirst or some tragic bullshit.”

“So, what? You’ll only give me water if I cooperate? Fuck you.” Keith spat.

“Look, just follow the system,” the man began, “We have thousands of omegas here and the dude coming in probably isn’t looking for your type anyway. Just get your ass outside the room until he picks some tramp to fuck and you can go back to bed.”

“This isn’t fair,” he called, his voice cracking in despair.

“Life’s not fair, kid,” was all the man had to offer before returning his attention to his clipboard and leaving.

He had left the door slightly askew, but not enough for Keith to see out. 

“Life’s not fair,” he repeated to himself. He was crestfallen. This was his life. Unfair. 

He was never one to comply with… well, anything. He was a rebel at heart, that much was true. But he was also a human. He had basic survival instincts biologically implanted in him, to survive at all costs. So, if his survival relied on changing his clothes and standing outside for a few minutes, so be it.

He hated the thought of doing anything some asshole man told him to do, but he didn’t have much of a choice.

“Life’s not fair,” he said again, standing up from the bed and inching towards the closet. 

The closet didn’t have a door, just silky white curtains hiding the contents of the hole in the wall. Keith placed a hand on the curtain, noticing it felt much like the sheets on the bed, only thicker. He pulled the entirety of the fabric to one side, revealing shimmering golden garments. Across a pole hung robe-like, shimmering pieces of golden clothing. There were three layers of shelves stacking themselves up from the bottom of the closet as well. Instead of clothes, there appeared to be strange devices that Keith had never seen before. Among them were the obvious handcuffs and whips, leading Keith to conclude that they were all just kinky sex toys. 

He almost gagged at the thought of a total stranger using such tools on him as he lay there helpless and submissive, but shook off the thought and tried to ignore it. He’d burn that bridge when he got to it. And by bridge, he meant whatever man tried to lay a hand on him. 

Quickly, he changed into one of the least revealing robes he could. Most of his chest and stomach were exposed, the thin fabric draping over his shoulders and out to the sides. Hung with each robe was a thong made of the same fabric. He rolled his eyes and begrudgingly put it on.

These weren’t even clothes. Not really. They were pieces made solely to reveal his body to whatever horny alpha would see him. Clothes were meant to protect, cover, and keep you warm. These garments made Keith vulnerable to lustful eyes and forced shivers down his spine. 

“Life. Not fair,” Keith reiterated one final time. 

He turned and walked out of the room, opening and slamming the door behind him. To either side of him, there were golden walls with large doors, obviously locked. Directly in front of him, was a large reflective surface, making him stare himself down. He looked so small against the tall walls, forcing him to draw parallels between his small appearance and status as an omega.

He inched closer to the wall in front of him, glaring at himself. He hated to admit it, but he didn’t look bad in the clothes. For himself, sure, he looked sort of sexy. But he still wasn’t a fan of strangers eyeing him down in such revealing clothing. He might as well just stand in a stadium of people ass-naked helicoptering his dick and yelling “Look at me! My penis is out!”

But for now, no one could see him. He was alone with nothing but his own reflection, and that comforted him. His eyes glided up and down his own body, looking at his lean stature and exposed stomach. He blinked rapidly before moving his attention to his face, smooth black hair perfectly framing its sides, with bangs hanging messily above his eyes. 

He’d heard before that omegas had a natural sex appeal to them, attracting alphas and betas alike. He’d never really considered himself to be a sexy person, but looking at his own reflection now, he couldn’t help but see it for himself.

All he had to do now was stand there until told otherwise. 

But, it slowly donned on him that there was no reason for there to be a mirror there. It had to be some sort of 2-way glass or something, meaning he was on display like an outfit on a mannequin in a sleazy, overpriced boutique. His comfort with standing in the room quickly diminished. 

He could almost feel the eyes of a soulless alpha on the other side, staring at him with lustful, greedy intentions.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, feel free to comment if there are any mistakes and I will happily fix them. I love reading everyone's comments so feel free to express your thoughts!


	3. Eyes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: Though the majority of the fic is safe, there is mention on non-con and non-consensual groping in the section of Keith's point of view. There will be a summary of his part w/o the details in the ending chapter notes if you would like to skip this section so you can continue reading on with a full understanding of the story.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finals are coming up so it's gonna be a busy week next week. There may only be one update for the week, but don't be shocked if there are several updates per day the week of Christmas. Also? Poor Keith. I feel kind of bad for writing his POV, but it's all for the sake of the NARRATIVE. (Sorry Keith ;-;)

The halls were exceptionally tall. Golden chandeliers sparkled in pure brilliance, around 25 feet apart from each other down the long corridor. Shiro knew the building was large from the outside, but it felt almost overwhelming to see such a wide, open space. He had lived in enormous and open mansions his entire life, but they were nicely furnished and still comfortable to be in. This place, however, had an air of discomfort circulating all around it.

There were what appeared to be boxed rooms on each side of the hall, one after another with a small space between them. Not surprisingly, these walls also gleamed gold. Shiro could see a door of the same nature on the side, as well as a wall made of glass facing outwards into the hallway. It was not what he expected the “viewing room” to look like, but he knew he shouldn’t be surprised by the extreme extravagance. 

Shiro took his first step down the hallway, looking forward to see that his guide was only a few steps ahead, turned around to face him. The guide wore a white and gold shirt, neatly tucked into iridescent golden trousers. His face was thin and somewhat sunken in, and was made somewhat more apparent by his dull orange hair groomed backward to reveal a receding hairline. His smile was as wide as his eyes, and he owned a positive and bouncing demeanor although his dark gray eyes displayed a world of melancholy that Shiro couldn’t quite understand. 

Shiro was somewhat surprised that the guide gave off the scent of an omega—he assumed that all the non-sex workers would be betas or alphas for some reason. At first, he thought it was simply the scent of the room, but stepping ever closer to the guide, Shiro realized the scent was radiating from him.

“First time here, huh?” The guide observed, chuckling at Shiro’s fidgeting.

“Am I that obvious?” Shiro asked, continuing the walk down the long hallway.

“Yep. But once you start, you’ll come again and again,” the guide said, “You’ll also be back later.”

The guide let out a laugh that felt scripted—as if he delivered the same line to everyone. Shiro chuckled, just to be polite.

“Oh, I’m not sure about that,” Shiro awkwardly expressed, “This isn’t normally something I’d do. Not that people working in the sex industry or bad or anything, it’s just not really my scene.”

“I noticed you turned in one of those Black Friday certificates,” said the guide, “You know we only sold 5 of those as first come first served? Whoever got you that was quite a lucky guy to get his hands on it.”

“How much did it cost?” Shiro asked.

“Those cost around $500,” the guide explained, “95% off for 5 lucky alphas.”

“Holy shit, that’s a steal,” Shiro breathed.

“Exactly. Bait ‘em and trap ‘em,” the guide said, “How do you think we get loyal customers?”

“That’s fucking crazy,” 

“Have you been looking at omegas at all?” the guide asked, turning Shiro’s attention to the whole reason he was there.

No, he hadn’t. After being drawn to his attention, Shiro began to move his gaze upwards and to his left. He stopped dead, staring at the first omega he cared to look at.

She was tall and blonde, with several hickeys on her thighs and neck. She wore a golden lace bra with an intricate strap pattern, revealing the majority of her small, round breasts. She wore panties of the same design, cut low to reveal a smooth mound.

“Can she see me? Through the glass?” Shiro questioned.

“Nope. You see her, but she merely sees her own reflection.” The guide said.

“She’s very pretty,” Shiro stated.

“She’s not the one you want,” the guide said, continuing the walk. He looked to both sides, as if he were looking for a specific person, and stopped.

“How do you know?” Shiro asked, following the guide.

“I’ve been here since I was 19,” the guide expressed, “I know what’s best.”

The guide’s eyes met Shiro’s again, and Shiro could once more see the hurt in the man’s eyes. He wanted to ask what was the matter, but he wasn’t sure he wanted to know the answer.

Shiro caught up to where the guide was standing and looked to his right.

There stood a young boy, no older than 18. He stood several inches shorter than Shiro, staring confidently out into the hallway, or rather, into his own reflection. His hair lay gracefully above his eyes, dark and flowing. His eyes shined blue-gray, with dark rings around the irises. He had a glowing, light complexion with no noticeable flaws.

“Him?” Shiro asked, a little shocked that the guide was showing him a boy. He had yet to come out as bisexual to even his closest friends, and there was no way a stranger would know his sexuality.

“Don’t play dumb,” the man said, “You radiate queerness. Remember, I’ve been here a long time.”

“Can’t really argue with you there,” Shiro responded with a chuckle, “but why him in particular?”

The guide looked at him, almost pained, as if he were trying to force Shiro to see more meaning in his words.

“He just got here. He needs someone like you,” he explained.

Shiro wanted desperately to understand what the living hell the guide was trying to get at.

“So, he’s never…?” Shiro said, unable to bring himself to say anything else.

“No,” the guide began, still as painfully cheerful as ever, “He’s feisty,” 

Again, there seemed to be a deeper meaning to what the guide was saying, but Shiro couldn’t force himself to understand anything further than the denotation of his words.

“Does he not want to be here?” Shiro asked. He was beginning to become appalled, but he felt he was beginning to understand what the guide was hinting at. Was he…?

“He doesn’t have anywhere else to go,” the guide began, “But I assure you he’ll be happy to have you.”

“May I ask an obscure question?” Shiro asked, hoping he could get some answers.

“Of course!”

“How do you see his future here?”

“Hopefully, nothing like mine,” the guide said, “They let me retire and become a guide, but I don’t think they would let someone like him do something like that.”

His smile was wide and full of pearly white teeth. Though his eyes screamed at Shiro, telling stories of his life in the brothel. The horrors he must have went through and what he must be going through now still working in that place had obviously hurt him greatly.

“So why did you bring me of all people to him?” Shiro asked

“Well, Shirogane,” the guide began, “You said so yourself that you’ve never been somewhere like this. It just seems like fate that you’re here, especially when we just got this one in. Plus, who knows what’ll happen to him if no one has an interest in him?”

Shiro had never given the guide his full last name. He never gave anyone his full last name, he just tells everyone to call him “Shiro.” This was odd. The guide seemed to know more than he let on, but he hid it behind a façade of happiness. More about the brothel, more about the boy, and more about Shiro.

“The certificate is good for one night, spent in the brothel,” the guide said, “If you want to take him home, it’s an extra thousand, and if you just want to keep him it’s $300,000.”

“Keeping an omega is an option?” he asked.

“Only for approved members who won’t spill the tea,” the guide explained, wrapping his arm around Shiro patting him on the lower back, “Good for you, you have a member’s card!”

Shiro had felt his hand directly above his back pocket. A wave of understanding flooded over Shiro, and as soon as the guide stepped away he reached into his pocket and pulled out a shiny gold card. The guide desperately wanted Shiro to buy this boy, though he was unsure what for.

“Your buddy must have really went all out to get you a certificate and a membership,” the guide chuckled.

It made a little less sense at first, but then it made all the sense in the world. The guide knew who Shiro was by looking at him. He knew Shiro had enough money to take home an omega, and he knew Shiro wasn’t very comfortable window-shopping for sex. Shiro wasn’t sure why, or what else he was supposed to know, but things were beginning to feel right.

“Is there anything else I should know about him before I pay a third of a million dollars for him?” Shiro asked, trying his best to let the man know he understood by acting confident in his words.

“He’s not a fan of being exposed,” the guide said.

Everything clicked.

“Well then, I’ll take him,” Shiro said. Thinking fast, he added, “And he’ll expose himself to me if I want him to.”

He felt almost gross saying it, but it was the best way to make the guide understand that he understood.

“If you don’t enjoy your purchase, I’ll be here same time next month,” the guide smiled.

“I’ll come and see you then, to leave a review,” Shiro said, “Same time next month.”

“Excellent. I’ll have them bring you your omega then.”

\--- 

Keith continued to stare out until he heard the door to his right creak open. A different man entered now, an alpha. He wore the same uniform as the man with the clipboard, though he appeared much younger. His hair was dark brown and faded around the sides, though somewhat spiked on top.

“You’ve been selected,” he said, “Guess you’re not useless after all.”

Keith’s heart sank. It felt as though a cold stone had dropped in his stomach and his eyes widened, watering up with tears. 

“I don’t want to,” Keith cried, “You can’t let him come in here.”

A vicious smile let across the man’s face, and he scoffed at the crying omega. His eyes glowed with what Keith could only determine to be hate.

“He’s not coming in,” the man laughed, “you’re going out.”

“What do you mean?” Keith asked, between sobs, “I thought they came in here.”

Keith wiped away the tears that were now streaming down his face, water pouring faster and faster, making his skin sticky to the touch.

“Not when you’ve been sold off like the whore you are,” the man laughed, stepping into the room.

Keith instinctively cowered backward a bit. He would normally put up a fight, but this man was large and intimidating and Keith just felt broken inside. He was lost and scared and didn’t feel like fighting anymore. He almost felt like just giving up.

“A real handsome, muscular man just bought you so you can go home and live with him,” he teased, “Don’t worry, he’ll probably whore you off to all his other friends so you’ll still get the full experience of being passed around like a toy.”

Keith’s heart broke more and more, but he felt an anger in his gut beginning to form at the same time. Only moments ago, he wanted to give up, but this man was asking to fight. It was a strange sensation to feel both anger and defeat, and he couldn’t quite put a name to the emotion created when the two opposing feelings intertwined.

“Bullshit!” Keith cried out, hiccupping.

“No bullshit to it,” the man said, stepping closer to Keith so they were a shoulder-length apart, “Imagine how it’s gonna be to get fucked by such a strong man like that every day. His arms squeezing you while he forces himself inside of you again and again.”

Keith opened his mouth to make a sharp and witty retort but nothing came out. He swallowed and sniffled, frozen in place.

“You think your crying is bad now? Wait until there’s a stranger, balls deep in you. I don’t know what would be worse, honestly, the humiliation or the pain of a cock splitting you open.”

The man stepped forward again, filling the gap between the two of them.

“I only wish I’d have gotten a chance to hear those sobs while I was pounding you into the mattress,” the man scowled, “They give the rejects to us anyway,”

He leaned forward and groped Keith, squeezing and rubbing his hand against his bulge, making Keith squeeze his eyes and cry out more, while his other arm wrapped around the small of his back, pulling him closer and making sure he couldn’t back away.

Keith built up what little bit of fight he had in him and tried pushing the man away. He didn’t want this. The man was stronger than him, heavier too— and barely budged behind the force of Keith’s shove.

“No need to get physical with me,” the man said, “It doesn’t matter anyway. He bought a virgin, he’s gonna get a virgin.”

The man back away, and a wave of relief flooded over Keith’s body. It quickly faded as the man reached into his back pocket and pulled out a rag. He placed it over Keith’s mouth, making him nauseous from the smell. 

“Ready to meet your new owner?” the man asked, “He’s out in his car, waiting to split your ass in two.”

Keith felt the man pick him up with a light grunt and place him over his shoulder. But then, he was out like a light.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you skipped Keith's POV: A man enters the room with Keith and tells him he's been sold not for one night, but indefinitely to to a structured and strong man. Keith cries, and the man drugs him to carry him outside to Shiro's car.


	4. Confusion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shiro brings Keith home and is put in a tight spot when some friends catch him bringing a drugged omega into his home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is a little shorter than I normally write, but I really wanted to separate some plot points and it just sort of worked out this way.

Keith’s head pounded in his skull. His eyes were barely open, but he could see the light cascading down from the streetlamps through the car windows as he lay helplessly in the back seat. Even that small bit of light intensified what was slowly becoming a migraine. 

He lay in the back seat, dazed and moaning as he desperately tried to comprehend what was happening and where he was. Confusion caterwauled in his head, telling him to get the hell up and figure out where he was. But his muscles were tense. He couldn’t move. His skin felt detached from his body and he could taste bile in his throat.

He let out a moan of discomfort in his dissociative state and heard a soft shushing coming from what he could barely make out to be the person sitting behind the wheel. Everything was starting to come back to him, though he couldn’t piece together everything. 

He had been sold off. Where was he? Oh yeah. He’d already figured that out. In a car. But what was he doing? He felt sick. Where was he? Oh yeah. Car. Who was driving? The strong man, by the look of his muscular arm. Keith could barely see his outline from behind closed eyes. Wait a minute—where was he? What was he doing again? He felt sick. Where was he? Why did he feel like he was dying? He felt like crying, but he had no energy. Everything hurt. 

His head throbbed as he tried to fight the urge to fall asleep. He couldn’t… he couldn’t keep his eyes open anymore… just for a moment… he hurt… he had… to rest… just… for…

-

Shiro swallowed hard, a lump caught in his throat. He had just bought a human being. But it was all for the best, right? The entire brothel was beyond corrupt, that much was clear. Now, all he had to do was keep the boy in his back seat on the down-low for a month and figure out why the guide had pointed him in the direction of this boy.

He had so much to learn and figure out before he went back to the brothel to meet with the guide again. Who was he and how much did he know that was beyond Shiro’s comprehension? Shiro didn’t know much, but he was just running on instinct at this point.

And these instincts were telling him to protect the boy, trust the guide, and learn whatever he could to find the truth.

Shit. What was he going to tell his friends? “Oh hey, I bought a sex slave but don’t worry it’s not like that I swear.” Or “Guys! I’m going to try and expose a corporation and the first step was to give them a ton of money in exchange for a human!”

Shiro wondered to himself if he should even tell his friends the truth of the matter, or if he should tell them anything at all. The entire situation felt unreal and like something he could never in his wildest dreams make up.

He would have to figure it out later, he was almost home. 

-

Keith began to fall awake again as he felt strong arms grab him by his waist. He had regained barely enough energy to move but tried with all his might to fight away from whoever had thrown him over their shoulder.

“Fuck you,” he muttered. There was no emotion in his voice, which had been completely drained of any energy.

“I’m sorry you feel that way,” came a muffled response. Keith couldn’t tell if it was just the person’s voice, or if whatever was making him so drowsy had also interfered with the clarity of sound.

He lifted his head, just enough to see an expansive yard adorned with bushes and flowers all around. Tilting his head up with as much energy as he could spare, he saw the enormous home of the man who was holding him. It was dark, so he couldn’t make out many of the fine details of the home. But from what he could see, the dude was loaded. 

“Fuck you,” Keith said again, still making a feeble attempt to struggle against the man.

This time there was no response. Keith could only see an expansion of light as the man opened his front door and carried him inside. He was still so tired. So, so tired.

-

“What the fuck?” chimed a voice from another room.

Shiro frantically spun around to see Matt, standing in the entrance way to the living room with a look of concern painted across his face. He wore his normal day clothes, standing with confidence in the doorway as if he lived there. Shiro had given Matt a key years ago, but it was only supposed to be for emergencies.

“It’s like three in the morning,” Shiro quietly complained, “What the hell are you doing here?”

“Sorry, we’re playing hide-and-seek,” Matt explained.

Of course, Matt’s response raised more questions than it answered. But Shiro couldn’t really be too shocked to find Matt in his house, even under these circumstances. It was just like him to do something stupid like this.

“Can I ask why you’re carrying a half-naked man?” Matt asked.

“I, um,” Shiro began before dropping his voice dead.

He said he would figure out what to tell his friends later. Of course, he didn’t expect to be explaining anything to his asshole friend who broke into his house at 3 am to play a children’s game. 

“I bought him,” Shiro said awkwardly. Why the fuck did he just say that? He could have made up so many stories or just said nothing instead of admitting to what was arguably the strangest thing he’d ever done.

“You… what?” Matt asked, stepping closer to Shiro to examine the person draped over his shoulder.

“Fuck you,” the boy said in a drowsy voice, “This is… bullshit,”

There was so much happening that Shiro genuinely wanted to pinch himself and see if he was just having a really weird and really fucked up dream. 

“Shiro, really, have you lost your mind?” Matt asked, looking back and forth between Shiro and the boy, “Is this some sort of weird joke?”

“Well, he was supposed to be a secret,” Shiro said, not making things much better for himself.

“This is a lot, even for you,” Matt said, expressing concern through a raised brow.

“I could say the same thing about you hanging out in my house in the middle of the fucking night,” Shiro retorted between clenched teeth.

“Wait, so this guy belongs to you? Like for real?” Matt asked.

“You’re just going to have to trust me,” Shiro responded, “He needed me.”

Matt took a few steps back, returning to the doorway where he was originally standing.

“Shiro, I don’t want to believe you’re a rapist-slash-serial killer, so I’m just going to let you do your thing,” Matt said, nodding his head and puckering his lips for the extra effect.

“God, our friendship is weird,” Shiro said, shaking his head, “I’ll explain everything later, I promise.”

Shiro began to walk past Matt in order to reach the staircase, which was situated at a corner of the open living room. It only took moments before Shiro had heard the door open, once again turning his attention away from the boy on his shoulder and towards his incredibly weird friends.

“Got you, bitch-face!” yelled Lance as he crashed into the house, fumbling and pointing finger-guns at Matt.

“Seriously?” Shiro scoffed, “You both have homes.”

Lance eyed the boy draped over Shiro’s shoulder. He opened his mouth to speak but no words came out. There was a puzzled look on his face, as he continued to stare, before shaking his head and shrugging his shoulders.

“I’m afraid to ask,” he said, unclasping his finger-guns and ruffling his hair.

“Shiro bought a person from the brothel, he’ll explain later, it’s not what it looks like.” Matt summarized, rolling his eyes.

“You’re the bitch-face,” the boy said, pointing at Lance and pouting. He was late to comprehend the conversation, but contributing nonetheless. 

“There’s an obviously drugged boy draped over you,” Lance said, “I feel like I should be asking questions.”

“In short, I went to the brothel, the guide showed me how fucked up they are, and he told me to buy this boy to keep him safe or they would like… put him down or… something,” Shiro said quickly, trying his best to summarize the important parts of what had happened.

“Wait, I’m confused,” Lance said, crossing his arms, “So you went to bang a hooker, but brought one home to keep?”

“Well, yeah… But… I don’t really know what I’m doing,” Shiro admitted, “I’m just going with my gut.”

“I trust your judgment,” Matt chimed in.

“So, you’re just going to keep him?” Lance asked.

In all honesty, Shiro wasn’t entirely sure what he was going to do with him. He just had to take each obstacle as they arose, because god knows he had no clue what he was doing.

“I really don’t know,” Shiro breathed, “All I know is that there’s something really horrible about that place, and I think he’ll be able to give me some answers. The guide was a retired omega from the place. He’s the one who made me believe that there’s a whole lot more to the brothel than meets the eye.”

“What happens when you get your answers?” Matt asked.

“I guess I do whatever I can to make sure no one else has to endure that suffering,” Shiro explained.

“This is wild,” Lance said, “You just wanted sex and now you’re trying to expose a big corporation.”

“That’s politics,” Matt joked, snapping his fingers.

“Seriously though,” Shiro began, “It’s really late. Either leave or help me find him a place to sleep.”


	5. Blue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith wakes up and is fucking horrified because he doesn't know where he is. Hilarity ensues.

Shiro hadn’t even tried to fall asleep. He felt as though the only thing he could do was sit on the loveseat in silence as time ticked forward, waiting for the unconscious boy to awake. Matt and Lance had so graciously offered to stay the night to make things easier on Shiro, which was nice, even though they fell asleep in the floor with bodies intertwined about an hour or so into the night. It was nice of them to volunteer their Friday night—or, Saturday morning, rather, to spend time with Shiro and the unnamed boy, even if they were asleep through most of it. The sun was beginning to rise.

“Shiro?” called a sleepy Lance as he rolled away from Matt and sat up.

“Morning,” Shiro replied, looking to Lance.

“Did you sleep?” Lance asked, rubbing his eyes before standing up to stretch.

Shiro shook his head, returning his gaze to the boy sleeping on the couch. Shiro felt a pang of guilt thinking it, but the boy truly was beautiful. The way his hair fell so effortless over his closed eyes, brushing against perfectly curled eyelashes. Sharp features fitting symmetrically across a thin face to match his frame, with a nose pointing slightly upward above thin, soft lips. Despite the apparent sharpness was also a softness of the skin, smooth and delicate. A perfect blend of sexy and sweet, breathtakingly so.

Shiro licked his lips and returned his gaze to Lance, knocking the thoughts from his mind. The boy had likely been through more than enough without Shiro drooling over him.

“Hunk is on his way,” Lance stated, blankly staring at his phone before making his way to the light switch and flipping the living room lights on, “Allura has that press conference thing today, and I haven’t heard back from Pidge yet.”

“I want waffles,” Matt chimed in, rejoining the world of the conscious once the light had hit him. He stood up, yawned, and plopped on the loveseat beside Shiro.

“Hunk should be here soon,” Lance said, “I’m 95% sure that he’s the only person in the community who actually makes all his own food,”

Which was probably true. They all lived in a gated community near the capital, that only truly wealthy families could afford. Shiro himself had his meals made fresh for him on weekdays, with pre-made lunches and dinners on weekends. Even Lance’s mother, who was a stay-at-home omega had someone to help her care for the house and prepare the food.

There was a comfortable silence of mutual tiredness, which lasted all of three minutes before the door-bell chimed. 

“It’s open,” Lance called, scratching the back of his neck and taking a seat on the couch facing away from the unlit fireplace, opposite of the loveseat where the other two were sitting.

“I came as fast as I could,” Hunk said, rushing around the corner and into the living room, “What’s the big emergency?”

“I want waffles,” Matt dramatically called out, grabbing his stomach, “I may die if I don’t get two waffles, preferably chocolate chip,”

“Seriously?” Hunk sighed, dropping his shoulders and tilting his head back in a sense of relief.

“I mean, the waffle thing is important and all,” Shiro joked, “but the real emergency is asleep on the couch.” 

Hunk looked to see the sleeping boy, wrapped comfortably in a blanket and resting his body in the fetal position.

“Is he sick?” Hunk asked, stepping toward the boy before leaning down to examine him.

“No,” Shiro said, “He’s sort of my birthday present.”

“He’s from the brothel? You actually went?” Hunk asked, standing up straight and turning to Shiro.

“I almost left without anyone,” Shiro said, “But things got really weird and really complicated.”

He began to explain the entire escapade, every awoken person in the room listening intently as he went through every step of his night in extreme detail. He was a writer, after all, and his friends expected nothing less.

“That poor thing,” Hunk said, “I had no idea that’s the way things were, or I would have never given you that certificate.” 

Hunk’s words sounded crestfallen. It was obvious he felt extreme remorse, even though there was no way he could have known what horrors hid beneath the outward illusion of fair sex-work.

“Maybe it’s for the best,” Lance said, “Shiro got the boy out of that place before anything worse could happen to him.”

“I paid a third of a million dollars to that shitty place,” Shiro scoffed, still eyeing the sleeping boy.

“You’re a goddamn writer and millionaire,” Matt said, “Expose them.”

“I can’t,” Shiro said, “Not yet, anyway. There’s so much more to the story, and I need to figure out all that I can before blowing the lid off the place without sufficient evidence.”

“There’s evidence on the couch,” Matt argued.

“They could pin him a liar,” Shiro said, “They could pin me as someone deep into the trade, trying to clear my name by making up a story to shift the blame from myself onto the corporation. It could ruin everyone involved all while doing jack shit to shut down the brothel. I’ve seen shit like this go down before, and it’s not pretty.”

“We have Allura on our side,” Matt pointed out. It was obvious that he wasn’t necessarily arguing in attempts to sway Shiro’s opinions, but more trying to reason things out with himself.

“Hell, maybe having Allura on our side would make things even worse,” Lance chimed in, looking up from his phone.

“Worse for her, and worse for the country,” Shiro agreed, “She’s part of our group, and we’re all far from unheard of. If a scandal comes out about one of us, we all go down. And when Allura comes down with us, so does Alfor,”

“Shit,” Matt breathed, “This is a lot.”

“We have to keep this a secret,” Hunk reasoned, “One wrong move and we’re all screwed.”

“This would blow up like nobody’s business,” Shiro said, “Any journalist in their right mind would jump at the chance to publish an article exposing Allura or any one of her friends. And with everything that’s happened, there would be enough evidence to royally fuck me over and ‘prove’ that I’m not who people think I am,”

-

“Just imagine how people would see you if word got out,” chimed an unfamiliar voice.

Keith opened his eyes and looked out into a crowd of people standing by a cream loveseat. It was a large man with medium skin who spoke, standing tall with arms crossed. Keith pretended to remain asleep, eyes barely open, listening to the conversation they were having. 

He sensed that there were two alphas, a beta, and an omega. He tried not to panic as he remembered the man who drugged him telling him in detail about how he would be whored out to his owners’ friends. His heart began beating fast as the worst scenarios raced through his mind. That omega. Who did he belong to?

“The great Shiro, a perverted rapist.” Scowled a man with light brown hair. The beta. He reeked of the same omega scent that came from the boy sitting furthest away from the group. That boy must belong to him.

“It’s still mind-boggling to me that you own an omega,” the same man said, “What are you going to do with him exactly?”

Keith’s heart dropped as the question arose. What was the man going to do with him? Keith hadn’t heard him speak yet, and after the question the one man had asked, he wasn’t sure that he wanted to. Primal instincts shot through his veins, and he didn’t think before acting.

-

“Well,” Shiro began, “I-“

Screaming. The boy who had been asleep shot up, still in his golden lingerie. He screamed loudly, eyes bunched up.

In his alarm, Lance had somehow wound up standing on the couch screaming just as loudly as the unnamed boy, the other three blocking their faces as the boy in gold threw pillows and cushions at them.

“What the shit?!” Matt yelled, beginning to make his way towards Lance. Everyone was screaming or yelling now, unsure of what the hell was happening. 

Everyone was caught completely off guard, Shiro and Hunk exchanging worried looks as they were bombarded with the soft ammo.

The boy focused in on Matt as he approached Lance, aiming a cushion directly for his head before sprinting over towards the boy standing on the couch, grabbing him, and running full speed away from the other three, both screaming the entire time. 

The pair disappeared through the door leading to the aquarium, the unnamed boy slamming the door behind them.

A stunned silence filled the room as the three remaining boys stared wide-eyed at each other. 

“What the fuck just happened?” scolded Pidge from the entranceway. In the state of panic, no one even heard her open the door. The silence remained, a thick and horrified tension filling the room.

“When did you get here?” Matt asked, somewhat interrupting the mood.

“Just in time to see a half-naked boy attack your sorry asses and kidnap Lance,” she scorned, placing her hands on her hips, “What the fuck is going on?”

-

Keith had placed his back against the door, hoping they hadn’t followed him. He breathed heavily for a few moments before turning to the other omega with a knowing expression.

“I’m…” Keith began, steadying his breathing, “I’m going to help you get out of here,”

The boy just stood there, eyes wide with a mixture of fear and shock. His shoulders were tense, with arms raised and hands covering his chest. He stood around the same height as Keith, though appeared slightly shorter due to his coiled state. The boy’s skin was clear and nearly poreless as far as Keith could tell, and many shades darker than his own. The room was dim, so light could reveal a slightly different appearance, but even in the darkness, Keith could make out the details of the boy’s smooth face.

He looked away from the boy in front of him and glared around the room. The furniture here showed deep shades of blue, with dark wicker chairs to accompany the aesthetic. The walls were made of what appeared to be thick glass, with gallons of water and hundreds of fish swimming in the clear, open waters. He looked down to see ripples from the cascading water illuminate the floor, brilliant shades of a blue-tinted, transparent white flowing across the stillness of the ground.

“Um-“ The boy said, interrupting Keith’s trance, “Hi,”

The boy spoke slowly, taking a step back from Keith. He had one eyebrow raised above wide eyes.

“Don’t, um,” Keith rapidly spoke, trying to gather his thoughts, “Don’t be scared. You belong to the beta, right? Well… We’re… going to figure a way out, alright?”

The boy opened his mouth the speak for a moment, closing it after having seemingly nothing to say.

“Matt! Shi-“ the boy called, interrupted by Keith taking several steps forward and placing his hand over his mouth, shushing him.

“Look, I know it’s scary,” Keith reasoned, “But we can get out.”

The boy rapidly shook his head, smacking the hand away from his mouth.

“You don’t understand,” he said, “The only person I belong to is myself.”

Keith was taken aback. He blinked slowly, scanning the boy’s face to see if he could pick up on cues as to how truthful he was being.

“They aren’t going to hurt you,” the boy said, narrowing his eyebrows sympathetically.

“Do they not hurt you?” Keith asked, “When they…?”

Keith really didn’t want to say it. He didn’t even want to think about it, but Keith needed to know how those monsters were treating him.

Keith watched as a blush grew on the boy’s face, and he turned away from Keith and placed his right hand on his own cheek.

“No, they would never do that,” he began, “They’re my friends, that would be…”

“You’re friends with them? Even knowing that they only see you as an object?” Keith asked. He was appalled. Had they brainwashed him? The poor boy had no idea that he was being abused. Keith had to get him out of there, and quick before the others decided to follow them.

“They see me as a friend,” Lance explained, “When I go into heat, they’re there for me with blankets and cupcakes until it’s over. They would never lay a finger on me, even when my hormones are all out of whack. Except for that one time at that party, I guess, but that was my idea and he was the one that stopped it before it went very far!”

Keith blinked a few times before letting out a long, drawn-out breath. This boy apparently wasn’t in the same conditions as he was going to soon be in, and Keith began to wonder if he made a mistake by telling the boy he was planning to escape.

“They won’t try anything like that on you, either,” The boy promised, reaching his hands out to hold Keith’s, “You’re here because Shiro saved you. It’s a long story, but he just went to rent a room and an omega for a night before he realized how horrible they were being treated. I’m sure he’ll tell you the whole story if you give him a chance to explain himself.”

Give the man who bought him a chance to explain why he was doing the right thing in buying a human? Sounded fucking ridiculous. 

“Lance?” called a voice, knocking on the door, “Are you two okay?”

“Fine, Shiro,” Lance called back, “He’s just scared.”

“Can I come in?” he asked.

“No!” Keith yelled, “I don’t want to see you!”

Lance looked into Keith’s eyes and nodded his head.

“I promise you, he’s one of the greatest people I know,” Lance said, “He wants you to be safe.”

“He bought me,” Keith said, “Is there a way to excuse that?”

“I’m not going to make you meet him yet if you don’t want to,” Lance said, “And I want you to know that he won’t either. He would never force you to do anything,”

Shit. Was he really doing this? There was silence for a moment before Keith raised his voice to invite Shiro in. This was going to be the first time he got a good look at him, and his heart fluttered with anxiety.

“You can come in,” Keith called, his voice breaking.

The door began to open, letting the yellow light shine through, contrasting the blues of the room. Shiro entered, averting his gaze from Keith as he stretched a thin blanket out to the boy.

“Here,” Shiro said, his voice deep but non-threatening, “I’ll get you some clothes. But until then, just wrap up.”

Keith quickly wrapped the blanket around himself, returning one hand to Lance’s as soon as he felt decent. 

“I’m sorry we had to uh, meet this way,” Shiro said, looking at Keith and biting his lip, “I know you must have been horrified,”

“I can give you two a minute, Shiro, if you’d like to explain-“ Lance began.

“No!” Keith yelled, tightening his grip on Lance and stepping closer to him.

“I understand,” Shiro said, nodding, “I can’t imagine what you’ve been through. It’s okay to be afraid, just know I’m not going to hurt you.”

Keith breathed hard, overwhelmed and unsure of what to feel. He looked at the man, taking in his image. He was taller than Keith, by several inches. His hair was black all except for a piece in the front, which was as white as snow. He had a scar situated across the center of his nose, which was sharp and intimidating in a sense. One arm was shining a metallic silver, likely prosthetic. He radiated warmth, but Keith couldn’t force himself to not be at least a little startled by his presence. After all, he was still the man who had bought him. He was handsome, to say the least, but Keith refused to admit that he was anything more than simply slightly attractive.

“You’re going to have to stay here for a few weeks, but other than that you can do whatever you want,” Shiro said, “Can I ask your name?”

Keith looked at Lance for comfort. He felt close to the other omega already, despite having only met him. Lance nodded in encouragement, giving Keith’s hand a squeeze.

“My name is Keith,” he said, “A-and you may be bigger than me, but I can bite really hard so… don’t try anything.”

“I would never, especially after all you’ve been through,” Shiro assured, “I would love to know more about you, once you feel more comfortable around me.”

“Okay,” Keith said blankly, staring down at his hand, fingers still intertwined with Lance’s.

“You can pick whichever room you want,” Shiro said, “I- or, Lance, if he wants to, can show you around when you’re ready. Honestly, he probably knows this place better than I do.”

“Matt and I did break in last night,” he giggled, raising his voice and adding more buoyancy to his words. 

Lance was smiling, which made Keith feel more comfortable. He looked up to notice Shiro was also giving a smile, though his was more awkwardly positioned and seemingly more melancholic.

“I think we could both show him around,” Lance suggested to Shiro before returning his attention to Keith, “Do you want to meet everyone else first?”

Keith shrugged his shoulders. 

“Sure, I guess,” he said.

Lance began to pull him towards the door and past Shiro, back into the living room where everyone else stood. The change from deep, relaxing blues to the yellow light was strange, but his eyes began adjusting.

Keith began to tense up again, but a squeeze from Lance reassured him once more that everything was going to be okay as he stared out at everyone else. Hell, maybe things would turn out okay after all. Keith could only hope.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dear anon requesting Spideypool,
> 
> Your fic is in the works! ;)
> 
> If there are any fic requests then just shoot me an ask on my Tumblr, InhaleAss. One-shots and headcanons are welcome until I finish this fic, then I'll take longer requests! Thanks for reading!


	6. Confrontation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith gets to confront Shiro about buying him. While Lance is giving Keith a tour, Shiro gets a mysterious phone call. Also, Hunk finally makes breakfast.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry that it's been almost a week. School is killing me right now and I haven't been able to find the time to write. I've been building shit, studying shit, screaming over shit, and giving up on shit all week. But hey, I have an A in AP Calculus lmao. 
> 
> The next update might take a little while too, but finals are over Thursday and then I'm off for a week so updates are gonna happen a lot more frequently after that. Also, it's my second to last semester in high school so my grades next semester don't fuckin matter! That means that even after the break, updates will still be relatively frequent. 
> 
> And as for the spideypool fic, I'm working on it best I can, but it may still be a bit.

Shiro had not followed them. He stood in the doorway as Lance guided Keith to the center of the room, all eyes turning to him. There was a chorus of soft voices, introducing themselves and assuring Keith that no harm would come to him if they had anything to do about it. Shiro couldn’t force himself to single in on any specific lines of the ongoing conversation, but he noticed Hunk angrily staring into empty space and swearing under his breath at a rapid pace. His expression read rage, his words, fury. The swears were uncharacteristic of Hunk, raised in a home with a $50 swear jar fee.

“Thank you,” Keith clearly said, nodding his head in a gesture of understanding.

“They’re a bunch of damn creeps,” Hunk snarled between his teeth, arms crossed.

“Just wait until Allura hears about this,” Pidge scoffed, “There’s gonna be hell to pay for those assclowns,”

Allura was sure to have strong opinions on the whole ordeal. She had been unofficially dubbed the most influential young adult by several magazines in the past several years, leading human rights organizations and rallies across the country. Her father’s power had been limited for years, in favor of what the people hoped would be a democracy. But with more elected offices, mixed with the threat of buying votes, there came room for more corruption in individual sects of power. Allura believed in the basic ideas of a democracy, actively fighting to keep things as fair as possible for her people, but she also understood the limitations of her family’s power against the corruption and became an activist against a business-controlled government. Getting into the details honestly gave Shiro a headache, but he was still always there to listen to Allura rant against other officials. And honestly, he got a better understanding of the way things worked.

“Allura?” Keith asked, looking at Pidge and tilting his head.

“Sorry, uh, Princess Allura,” Pidge corrected, lifting her arm and whipping her finger outward for effect.

“Holy shit,” Keith said in disbelief, turning around to face Shiro.

Shiro stepped down from the doorway and made his way to the rest of the group, trying not to stare too intently at Keith in hopes of keeping him comfortable.

“Yeah, it’s weird,” Lance said, “She’s a completely different person when she’s not giving a speech or at some dumb meeting or something. You’ll love her, I promise,”

Keith didn’t seem to even acknowledge Lance, still staring at Shiro.

“You’re that Shiro,” Keith said standing a little taller, “I’ve read about you,”

-

“You’ve read about me?” Shiro asked.

“Well, you’re not exactly unheard of,” a voice chimed. It was the tall one—the beta. Matt, Keith remembered.

“Shiro,” Keith said aloud, thinking back to the surplus of articles that had come out about the brave and heroic Shiro, a close friend of the princess.

It really should have clicked sooner, with the missing arm and all. But Keith was only now connecting the man to young Takashi, the teenage boy who flung himself over a mother and child to protect them from a collapsing building. Reports had claimed he remained still for over three hours as rescuers cleared the area, his arm partially crushed by a sheet of metal throughout the duration, as well as heavy, spiked poles digging into his back. He remembered one article explaining how a piece of metal had already split open his nose before he dived to protect the mother and her child. There was never an explanation as to what caused the building to collapse, but there were thankfully no deaths and only minor injuries aside from Shiro’s. How could someone so heroic and selfless as Shiro do something like buying a person?

Keith would spend hours reading books and articles every day at the library—it was the only place he had ever considered a true home. There were three librarians, all of which were beyond nice, one even taking him in for a short while before he was… taken. He’d spent so much time there, almost everyone in the little town recognized him by name. But no one really bothered to know him more, or they would have understood his homelessness. Kelsie, one of the middle-aged librarians, was the one who took him in for a while. She had even offered to let him live there indefinitely, and offered to help him find work, even with books if he’d have liked. That was the last time he had ever spoken to her, leaving her house to clear his head before giving her a definite “Yes.” Perhaps he strayed little too far from the safety of the quaint town that night. Perhaps he was alone enough, but just well-known enough, for his abductors to know that no one would look for him. He was taken that night, every new hope of creating a life for himself destroyed.

Keith cleared his throat and sighed, returning his attention to Shiro.

“Why was someone like you somewhere like that to begin with?” he asked, squaring his shoulders and staring up at Shiro.

“I had no idea that place would be so horrible,” Shiro explained.

“You bought me,” Keith coolly said, swallowing in attempts to hide his hurt, “What can you say to that?”

“I…” Shiro paused for a long while, staring down at Keith a moment before closing his eyes and furrowing his brow.

The rest of the room was silent, tension growing ever thick the longer Shiro took to respond.

“I didn’t know what else to do,” Shiro finally blurted, “I couldn’t have just left you.”

“Why me?” Keith asked, not breaking his cool or showing any sign of weakness. This was his time on confrontation.

“I don’t know,” Shiro said, “The guide pointed me in your direction. He told me to help you, that he didn’t know what they would do to you if I didn’t get you out of there.”

“What about the others? Were they for some reason not as important as me, or was there an actual reason I wound up knocked out in the back of your car?” Keith prodded. He could feel his own heart racing, anger and confusion jump-starting his muscles and causing them to tense.

“I wish I had answers,” Shiro began, “But I don’t. The guide called me by name, told me to take you home, and to come back in a month. I don’t know what the plan is and I don’t know why it was you who wound up here, but I promise you that I would never do anything to hurt you.”

Silence. No one dared to speak or make any noise until Keith could formulate a response. How could Shiro not understand that he had already hurt him by equating him to someone who needed to be saved—by equating him to someone he could buy?

“You already have,” Keith snapped.

-

Shiro shut his eyes and swallowed hard. He understood that Keith was hurt, but all Shiro wanted to do was make sure nothing bad would happen to him. How had he managed to hurt Keith when his only goal was to protect him?

“How?” Shiro asked, failing not to sound defensive.

“You bought me,” Keith said, his voice flat.

Shiro said nothing at first, looking around the room to see tense shoulders, wide eyes, and a few open mouths. He had bought someone. He had good reasons, but he still did it. He couldn’t imagine how Keith must have felt to be lugged around like property, and maybe that was the problem.

“I can’t begin to understand why you hate me,” Shiro formulated, carefully choosing each word and speaking slowly, “and that can only be because I don’t understand what you’ve been through. You have every right to be pissed at me. I had no ill intentions, but I still don’t expect you to forgive me when I tell you that I’m sorry for having hurt you.”

Keith looked down, and back up at Shiro. Shiro half expected another sharp retort, half-expected to get smacked. He questioned himself if he should have even apologized when he hadn’t done anything wrong. Maybe he should have just acknowledged Keith’s hurt instead of letting himself take the blame. But maybe, in a way, he was to blame for the way Keith felt.

“I don’t hate you,” Keith sighed, the corners of his mouth curved downwards and out, “I just wanted answers.”

“I’m sorry I can’t give you any more information,” Shiro said, “All I can do is tell you that everyone here wants that place shut down as much as you do.”

“Actions speak louder than words,” Keith said, sticking out a hand from under the blanket to grab Shiro’s.

Shiro’s muscles tensed in anticipation, feeling Keith’s cold hand grab his own.

“I don’t want to hate you, or be mad at you,” Keith started again, “But you have to promise me with everything you have that you’re going to respect me, and do everything you can to…”

“Expose and shut them down?” Shiro finished.

“Yeah,” Keith agreed.

“Well in that case,” Shiro began, letting out a sigh of relief, “I promise.”

-

After the air had cleared and Keith had gotten to confront Shiro, Lance took Keith off for a grand tour of “Casa del androide,” as Lance so offensively put it.

Shiro could only hope that Keith’s confrontation with him had created room for Shiro to start fresh, and maybe even befriend the wayward boy. He’d been through a lot, and Shiro knew he needed room to cope. And if that meant getting chewed out, then so be it. 

He sat at the stool closest to the wall, arms resting on the counter. He and Hunk were the only ones in the kitchen, as everyone else decided to accompany Lance on the tour, likely bringing up memories and dumb stories about the chaos that had happened in Shiro’s home. 

The kitchen was roomy and tall, with cabinets and counters stretching far backward and leading to a large screen door which led to the side of the house and into the garden. When the house was being built, Shiro had requested it not be too extravagant. But knowing his mother, he shouldn’t have been shocked when she included an aquarium, a library, two enormous separate studies, an oversized kitchen, an expansive garden, tall hallways with expensive artwork, a home theater, a music room, and a pool. And not to forget the seven bedrooms and five bathrooms.

“This place is too fucking big,” he said aloud with a pout.

“Boo-hoo,” Hunk replied with an air of sass, looking through the cabinets for ingredients to make the highly requested chocolate chip waffles.

“Everything is shiny and fancy,” Shiro said, “Do people think I’m an asshole when they walk in?”

“Are you worried about everyone who comes in here, or just Keith?” Hunk asked, pulling dark Ghirardelli chips out of the cabinet and tossing them down on the counter.

Shiro didn’t respond, just stared out to watch Hunk plug in the waffle maker and start pouring ingredients into a large bowl.

“It’s just so shiny and tall,” Shiro continued, “And I don’t think half of the pillars are even necessary. They’re just for show.”

“Are you seriously complaining about this?” Hunk asked, whisking the concoction together.

“It’s just so wasteful,” Shiro replied, “Keith’s entire house is probably the size of the kitchen alone. The dining hall has three fucking chandeliers with real diamonds. It’s ridiculous.”

“As ridiculous as it is, it’s still yours and you should be thankful for what you have,” Hunk said.

“I am thankful!” Shiro exclaimed, leaning back in his stool and crossing his arms.

“Doesn’t sound like it,” Hunk sang, returning his attention to the breakfast.

Shiro felt his pocket begin to vibrate. Who the hell was calling him? All his friends were here except Allura who was at a meeting, and he had already published more than enough articles for the week. He reached down, adjusting himself so he could easily remove the phone from his pocket.

The number was unknown.

“What the hell?” he whispered to himself. Hunk hadn’t heard him, pilfering in the freezer for something to add to the breakfast.

Shiro swiped to answer the call and held the phone up to his ear.

“Takashi Shirogane?” a familiar voice asked.

“This is he,” Shiro replied, “Can I ask who’s calling?”

“Great!” said the voice, “I’m calling to inquire about your recent purchase,”

The omega from the brothel.

“Yeah, yeah, uh… what’s up?” Shiro asked, trying not to sound dumbfounded.

“Says here this was your first purchase!” the voice said. Shiro could almost feel eyes on the back of his neck, a feeling of unease shifting up the base of his spine.

“Yeah, he um… yeah,” Shiro replied, swallowing hard.

“This may be an inconvenience to the both of us, but for security purposes, someone from the company will stop by in two weeks to ensure the safety of our reputation!” he said, his fake happiness dipping into uncanny valley. 

“Safety?” Shiro asked.

He looked up to see Hunk staring at him with lips pursed and eyebrows furrowed. He had obviously picked up that something about the call was completely off.

“I can only assume you’ve found the rules,” the voice began again, “but if not, they’re attached to the inside of your new pet’s clothes. If the inspection goes well, you may just be cleared for another purchase! Two weeks from today, one in the morning! Don’t forget it! And don’t wear your new toy out all in one day!”

Before Shiro could reply, the line went dead. He swallowed hard and ended the call from his end, placing the device face down on the counter.

“It was the one omega from the brothel,” Shiro began to explain, “Someone from the organization is going to stop by in two weeks to make sure I’m following all the rules.”

“Which are?” Hunk asked with a half-frown and furrowed brows.

“That’s what I’m going to have to figure out.”


	7. Rules

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shiro reads the rules with Hunk while Lance tells Keith some stories about Shiro. Pidge and Matt are probably up to something!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I update erratically. I'm so sorry.

  _Rule #1 – Do not refer to your purchase by his/her name. Omegas are not people, they are property._

 

Shiro could almost feel the bile rising in his throat as he read the first rule on a list of many. There had been a link written across the tags in both golden garments, which Keith hesitantly handed over before throwing on some old clothes of Lance's he found in the guest room before returning to the tour of the house. The links led to a website with a plain black background with golden text. There were no separate pages, no title – Just a list of rules.

 

“What the fuck?” Shiro whispered to himself. He had followed the link on his phone, in a private tab, in hopes it wouldn’t show up on his browser history.

 

“What?” Hunk asked, leaning in over Shiro’s shoulder to see the small, dimly lit screen.

 

“It, uh,” Shiro began, swallowing hard and shaking his head, “It says not to refer to Keith by his name.”

 

“I don’t understand,” Hunk said.

 

“Something about omegas not being… people,” Shiro answered.

 

“Dang. What else is there?” Hunk asked, stepping back to his side of the counter to continue cooking.

 

_Rule #2 – Omegas should not go unused. Would you buy a puppy and not play fetch with it?_

“I don’t like this,” Shiro said flatly, laying his phone on the counter for a moment to collect his thoughts.

 

“Could it get much worse than the first rule?” Hunk asked, pausing the process of making waffles to start on whatever it was he was pilfering around in the freezer for.

 

Shiro stood up from his stool, grabbing it by the leather-lined backing and pushing it under the shining marble bar. He paced in silence for a moment, unable to rid his thoughts of the countless omegas who had been bought by people of power, who lived under these rules.

 

“Well?” Hunk pushed, still elbow deep in the freezer.

 

“Use him,” Shiro began, “Rule #2 is not to let him go unused. Like not playing fetch with a new dog.”

 

“Holy shit,” Hunk swore. He lifted his head at an angle to look at Shiro, who now stood with arms crossed.

 

“I feel like I should be more shocked to hear you swear like that, but at this point, I’m having trouble being surprised by anything,” Shiro said, returning to his seat before lifting his phone again.

 

"You don’t have to keep reading those,” Hunk encouraged, lifting a bag of sausage from the freezer, “It’s not like you’re going to be following them.”

 

“What about in two weeks when one of those assholes drops by and they see that I’m not treating Keith like a piece of meat? They take him back and give him to some sleazebag who will?” Shiro questioned with a raised voice, not in anger at Hunk but at the fact that all of this was all too real for all too many people.

 

Hunk was silent for a moment, laying the bag of sausage links on the counter and placing one hand beside them, looking off at nothing as Shiro stared at him.

 

“If you’re getting this worked up over these rules, imagine how Keith would feel,” Hunk said, “You’re not even the one being objectified, and you still feel so strongly _for_ him.”

 

Neither of them spoke for several moments, silence filling the room. Hunk didn’t wait long before returning his attention to cooking.

 

 “I have to tell him about all of this,” Shiro said, “We can’t really make any progress unless we do.”

 

“You said so yourself, this place is unnaturally large to be a home for one,” Hunk said, “He’s still on Lance’s little tour, so you at least have some time.”

 

 “What all are you making?” Shiro asked, finally noticing the sweet aroma of melting chocolate.

 

 “Don’t focus on my delicious chocolate chip waffles or delectable spiced sausage links right now,” he joked, “Focus on those god-awful rules.”

 

 “Don’t be a kill-joy,” Shiro joked back with a half-hearted smile.

 

 He lifted the phone again, skimming down to find the third rule.

 

_Rule #3 – All pregnancies occurring within the first year_ must _be terminated. No exceptions._

 

Shiro read the rule to Hunk, causing a look of disgust to grow on his face.

 

“You don’t have to worry about that one, at least,” he said with a humorless chuckle.

 

“I feel like I’m going to be sick,” Shiro said, “But I’m not sure if it’s the pregnancy thing, the termination thing, or the first-year thing.”

 

“Maybe a mixture of all three,” Hunk suggested.

 

“Just when I think they can’t possibly get any worse, they do,” Shiro said, exasperation in his voice.

 

“Next?” Hunk suggested.

 

_Rule #4 – Omegas in heat may not interact with others during the time of said heat, including other omegas._

 

"That one isn’t too bad,” Hunk said.

 

“It’s still not good,” came Shiro's response.

 

“Well, obviously,” Hunk agreed, “Just in comparison to all the other inhumane bull crap.”

 

“I think there’s only one more,” Shiro said.

 

His finger hovered over the screen, not wanting to scroll down in fear that it would somehow get worse. Could the last rule honestly be much worse than the others? Omegas not being people? A rule that they need to be used like a pet? Shiro held onto a glimmer of hope that things couldn’t get worse. He didn’t want to think about anyone having to live the horror that was these rules, and he prayed to any god that would listen that the last rule wouldn’t make things even worse for the unknown number of people who had to live like this.

 

_Rule #5 – Disobedient omegas may be reconditioned up to three times. Further disobedience may result in euthanasia._

_-_

“Have you enjoyed the tour so far?” Lance asked, stopping dead in his tracks, turning to face Keith. It was just the two of them now, Pidge and Matt had wandered off a bit ago. Something about an alien doll, Keith remembered.

 

“Yeah, it’s been nice,” Keith admitted, shuffling his feet and shooting Lance a half-smile.

 

He had learned more about Shiro then he had expected, though he couldn’t help but wonder how true the stories Lance and the others told were. Shiro surfing down the stairs on a dare? Matt stealing Shiro’s arm and taking it out for a date to the movies? Pidge programming a robot to follow Shiro in secret and make growling noises at him every twenty minutes just to freak him out? The stories sounded outrageous, but Matt swore he had tons of pictures saved on his computer at home. Keith would have to see them some time.

 

“I know this isn’t an ideal situation for you, but I really hope you can find a friend in Shiro,” Lance said.

 

“I remember reading so many articles about him, you know?” Keith said, “I never would have thought that I’d end up in his home.”

 

“It comes with the territory of powerful families,” Lance explained, “Our names have been plastered over plenty of articles throughout the years, but none blew up as much as Shiro’s did.”

 

“Sounds… weird,” Keith said, “Have you ever read about yourself?”

 

“Well, I’ve read about my dad more than anything,” Lance shrugged, “He’s worked on some pretty controversial cases,”

 

“A lawyer then, right?” Keith asked.

 

“Right,” came Lance’s quick response, “Everyone says lawyers are shitty, but my dad taught me everything I know about right from wrong. Everyone deserves a chance, be nice to everyone, etc.”

 

“He sounds like a pretty good guy to me,” Keith said.

 

“Yeah,” Lance said before momentarily falling quiet, “I hate to turn this around again, because I don’t want to sound like I’m forcing anything, but that’s part of the reason I love Shiro so much,”

 

“Morality?” Keith asked.

 

“More than that,” Lance began, “He’s older than me, so we never had too many classes together. But one year when we had study hall, there was this new girl who came in. This school is, like, real pristine and shit. You either have to be rich or a genius to get in, and she was the latter. Most kids got in because of social status, but she came from the south side of the city, and some people were giving her major shit for it.”

 

“He told them to fuck off? Punched a kid in the nose?” Keith asked.

 

“Well, no.” Lance said.

 

“So…?” Keith asked, trailing off in hopes Lance would continue speaking without further prompting.

 

“He went to the office about it at first, and they said they’d take care of it,” Lance said, “But they didn’t. People started sending her threats, but it was just from a group of like six kids. He knew who they were, and he knew he wasn’t the only one who thought they were assholes. _That’s_ when he told them to fuck off before things got worse for them. They didn’t. He went to the office for help. They didn’t help. So, he wrote an article for the school paper about the kids, urging a walk-out if they didn’t get suspended.”

 

“Did they get suspended?” Keith asked, genuinely intrigued in the story.

 

“Not right away,” Lance said, “They told Shiro to refute the walk-out. He didn’t, and a little less than half of the student body walked out with him. Another chunk didn’t even show up that day.”

 

“Holy shit,” Keith said, “What a power move.”

 

“Every move Shiro makes is a power move,” Lance smiled, “I’m sure there’s an article about that somewhere out there too,”

 

“I still have a lot to learn about this guy, especially if we’re going to be living together.” Keith said.

 

“I think once you get to know him and get settled in, you might even start to like it here,” Lance said, "You know, with all of us."

 

“I don’t know,” Keith admitted.

 

“Do you read a lot?” Lance asked, changing the subject suddenly, “You’ve talked a bit about reading articles, but do you read books?”

 

Keith was a bit taken aback. He’d spent a great chunk of his life doing nothing _but_ reading, and he felt sort of glad that it was being brought up.

 

“Yeah, actually,” Keith said. He didn’t really have the energy to explain his past to Lance just yet. He trusted the boy, and knew that he would tell Lance all about his years in the library eventually, just not right now.

 

“Well, the last room I was gonna’ show you was the library, but I think you should wait for Shiro,” Lance said, “He collects books. The guy loves to read, he's like a literary genius who says 'fuck' a lot.”

 

Keith could feel his heart flutter at the thought of having his own collection of books. Hell, even being able to read Shiro's books sounded incredible.

 

“There’s really a library?” he asked, eyes wide in enthusiasm, "You're serious?"

 

“There is, but that’s an adventure for another day,” Lance said, “and that concludes our tour! For now, anyway.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Human trafficking is a really big deal for a lot of innocent people
> 
> 1 (888) 373-7888
> 
> ^^ That's the hotline number for the National Human Trafficking Resource Center. Not sure if anyone reading this would ever need to use it, but if you ever feel like you or someone you know is in danger, or have any information related to trafficking, the hotline is always open.


	8. Companionship, Nothing More.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They finally eat breakfast! Yay! But Shiro keeps thinking about the rules and how he can't hurt Keith. 
> 
> Pidge dies of homosexuality! Sausage is thrown about!
> 
> Shiro smells like a WHOLE snack!

These clothes were the most comfortable Keith had ever worn, despite being found on the floor of a spare bedroom. They smelled vaguely of Lance – they were, after all, his garments. Beautiful dark blues in the heather navy material, soft and warm against the skin, a small star situated in perfect stitch on the left sleeve. This shirt alone likely cost more than anything he had ever owned. Then again, Lance’s underwear alone likely cost more than anything he had ever owned as well.

 

He felt lucky to be wearing clean, unworn briefs that Lance had found tucked away in a drawer. Plain black, but soft and well-fitting, covered by jeans from a high-end brand Keith had never even heard of. Of course, the jeans were just as comfortable as everything else Lance had given him to wear.

 

Looking in the tall bathroom mirror, he couldn’t help but think back to the last time he observed himself in this way. Previously, he was exposed against his will and helpless to anyone who felt they had the right to touch him. Now, he was covered and safe, given the promise that no one would so much as lay a finger on him without his permission. Lance had said so himself, and Keith was beginning to trust Lance like he had never trusted anyone before.

 

Through Lance’s words, he was beginning to trust Shiro too. He was angry at first, resentful that Shiro had paid money to own him. But he was beginning to understand that Shiro’s intentions weren’t to harm anyone. He was put in a rough situation and had to make a decision on the spot, so how could Keith judge him for just trying to help? He knew so little about the man, despite having read of his heroism and hearing stories about the man.

 

Then again, perhaps it made sense that Keith didn’t really _know_ Shiro. Everything he had been told thus far had been other people’s judgments of him. Talented, charismatic, heroic, brave, funny, etc. But these were descriptors that other people used – People who had their own interpretations of Takashi Shirogane. Keith knew that in order to know the alpha, he would have to form his own, first-hand opinions instead of listening to articles or people who had known him for years. It wasn’t so much that Keith didn’t want to listen to Lance’s opinions, more that he wanted to form his own.

 

Keith heard a rustling from outside the bathroom door, probably Lance waiting for him to come out so he could take him back downstairs for breakfast.

 

“I’ll be out in a second,” Keith called.

 

“Take your time, food can wait,” came Lance’s response, muffled by the thick, wooden door.

 

He flipped the faucet on and allowed cool water to run for a moment before cupping his hands beneath the clear, steady stream and splashing a small amount onto his face. He glared back up at the mirror, watching as individual drops rolled down his smooth skin, gathering at his chin and dripping back into the fanciful sink.

 

Drying his face with the once neatly folded white towel beside the sink, he continued to glare deep into his own eyes. He patted the towel around, soaking up the drops as the soft, fluffy cotton met his skin. He laid the towel where it was originally folded before leaving the bathroom to meet with Lance once again.

 

-

 

“Look, I don’t know what you bastards did, but I’m going to kill both of you,” Shiro threatened.

 

“Nothing! We didn’t do anything,” Pidge said, lifting her shoulders and widening her eyes in a sense of false innocence.

 

“They did something,” Hunk confirmed without looking up from the plates of food in from of him.

 

“If I help you carry the plates to the dining room will you believe me?” Pidge asked, approaching the counter where Hunk stood and lifting two of the plates.

 

“Can’t say that I will,” Hunk said with a smile before returning to plating his breakfast.

 

As soon as Shiro had heard Pidge and Matt stepping around the corner and into the kitchen, he whispered to Hunk to forget about everything through breakfast, that they’d talk more later.

 

Shiro, in all honesty, had somewhat hoped to just forget about it all for a half an hour or so while everyone ate, but he could feel it creeping up his back and scratching at the back of his head, desperately trying to consume his every last thought.

 

“We’re back!” Lance sang, entering the kitchen with Keith following not too far behind.

 

“Enjoy the tour?” Shiro asked, crossing his arms and looking to Keith.

 

“Yeah, you… have a nice home,” Keith said, “A _really_ nice home. With a library.”

 

Shiro smiled at him, glad that he was talking with him so openly about something so positive.

 

“Yeah, I’ve been collecting some of those books since I was a kid,” Shiro said.

 

“You should, um… show me, some time. If you want to,” Keith responded.

 

“Maybe we could go after breakfast,” Shiro suggested.

 

“Do you like chocolate chip waffles?” Hunk asked, crossing between the two with plates in hand, “I made plenty for everyone.”

 

-

 

Shiro grabbed plates and followed Hunk off to what Keith remembered to be the dining room. It was large and fanciful, fitting the house’s theme of extravagance. A sparkling chandelier, high ceilings, a long dining table – it almost felt like the dining area of a castle, at a somewhat smaller scale. The table fit maybe twenty guests, give or take, with ornate ceiling tiles hanging high above head and a large door of glass with intricate framing, leading out into what Keith could only assume to be an equally extravagant backyard. Tables of marble sat off to the side of the room, presumably expensive sculptures sitting atop them.

 

“Hunk is like, a master-chef,” Lance said, leaning towards Keith, “I’m trying to make him and Shiro collaborate on making a cookbook.”

 

“Shiro cooks too?” Keith asked with a lowered voice, watching Shiro’s back disappear as he turned around a corner.

 

“No, he writes. Usually sciency journalism stuff, or even science fiction,” Lance explained, “But he and Hunk together could make a hell of a cookbook.”

 

Lance stepped forward, following the path that Hunk and Shiro had taken. Keith followed in step, finally paying attention to his empty stomach.

 

He sat at the seat he had remembered Lance saying belonged to Allura, only because he knew she wouldn’t be joining them for breakfast. It was the seat between Shiro, who sat at the head of the table, and Lance.

 

He stared at the plate in front of him, staring at the pieces of chocolate scattered throughout the waffle. Light reflected from the oozing, melted morsels, signifying warmth and freshness. He grabbed a piece and took a bite, feeling the already melted chocolate spread across his tongue.

 

“Hunk,” Matt said through a mouthful of waffle, “Will you marry me?”

 

“No,” Lance piped, “Marry me. Be my waffle mistress.”

 

“Fuck off, both of you,” Pidge said, “He’s mine as soon as I turn 18. You two can have each other.”

 

Bickering burst out, everyone attempting to claim Hunk as their future husband. Keith stared up at Shiro and watched as he placed

 

“Guys, I appreciate the romantic drama, but Shiro is the only one for me.” Hunk claimed, fueling the bickering even further.

 

“What!? I didn’t even get to call you Daddy yet!” Lance said.

 

“Ha!” Shiro exclaimed, “It’s because I don’t partake in needless bickering.”

 

“Please, it’s only because you have money,” Pidge argued, “He’s a gold digger!”

 

“We all have money, you absolute gremlin!” Lance teased, trying (and failing) not to smile.

 

“Fine,” Pidge said, leaning forward to grab a sausage link, “But when they get divorced, I get first pick over who gets custody of me.”

 

“Stop arguing and let Keith enjoy his waffles, you loons,” Hunk said, turning to Keith, “It gets like this in the morning sometimes, you’ll get used to it.”

 

Keith chuckled to himself with a smile. He had to admit, they seemed like decent people. Silly, but not in a bad way. Amusing, to say the least.

 

“They’re really good,” Keith said, "The waffles."

 

“Thanks!” Hunk responded, “My three passions are science, cooking, and marrying Shiro.”

 

“Gay! Too gay to function!” Pidge said before pretending to choke to death on a waffle, grabbing at her throat in an obviously over-dramatic manner and laying her head on the table with her tongue sticking out and upwards, which would have defied the laws of gravity had she actually been dead.

 

“Guys, you got so gay you killed my sister,” Matt said.

 

“I’m sure she’ll get over it,” Keith said with a smile. These people were… strange, sure. But they were fun, and kind of nice.

 

“Getting more comfortable already,” Lance observed, leaning closer to Keith and placing his head on the other boy’s shoulder.

 

Keith looked down at Lance, and then up at Shiro, who was mindlessly staring and smiling at the two of them.

 

“I hate the reason you’re here,” Shiro said, “But I’m glad that you are.”

 

He stood up from the table and backed out of the room, into the kitchen to be alone.

 

“I’ll be back,” Hunk said, following after him.

 

“I’m still dead over here,” Pidge said.

 

“I’m sorry, should I say a few words before we flush you down the toilet like a goldfish?” Matt asked, throwing a sausage link at his very much alive sister.

 

-

 

“I can’t do this,” Shiro said, “I can’t crush him all over again.”

 

“I don’t know what to tell you,” Hunk said, leaning back against the wall.

 

“But he needs to know so we can figure something out. An inspector or whatever will be by in two weeks and if they don’t like what they see, then I don’t know what’s going to happen to him.” Shiro explained.

 

“I know, I was here when you got the call, and I was here when you read the rules,” Hunk shot back, “And I’m here now, but I can’t guide you through this.”

 

“Keith is a good boy,” Shiro said, “He doesn’t deserve any of this.”

 

“Believe me, I know.”

 

“Then you also know that I can’t subject him to any more of this bullshit!” Shiro retorted, “He’s already starting to open up some. I can’t push him back into that shell.”

 

“Maybe you don’t have to,” Hunk suggested, “Talk to Lance, maybe he can help come up with a better solution. Heck, maybe Lance will tell him.”

 

“I’m the one that brought him here, this is my responsibility,” Shiro said, connecting his fingers to the bridge of his nose and squeezing slightly.

 

“You’re flip-flopping,” Hunk stated.

 

“Am not.”

 

“You are.”

 

“Fuck,” Shiro swore, “You’re right. I am. I don’t know what I’m doing.”

 

Hunk was silent for a second. It was obvious he had no idea what to say.

 

“I’m going to call him by his name. I’m not going to have sex with him against his will. I’m not going to lock him away when he goes into heat. And I’m not going to let anyone hurt him.” Shiro said.

 

“Tell him that,” Hunk said, “Because you’re nothing like those monsters. You’re breaking every single one of their rules because you _aren’t_ like them. Tell him that.”

 

“I think you already did,” came a voice from the doorway. The two shot around to see Keith standing in the doorway.

 

-

 

“I was going to tell you everything after you got some breakfast,” Shiro said, taking a step towards Keith.

 

“It’s okay,” Keith said, “You didn’t know I was listening and you were talking about how you didn’t want to hurt me.”

 

This was it. The moment Keith had been waiting for. The time when he could finally begin forming his own opinion on Shiro, based on his own experiences rather than the experiences of others. He was protective. Most alphas were, but Shiro was protective in a much more personal and emotional way. He was a good friend - funny and caring.

 

He had been angry at first, resentful that Shiro had paid money to own him. But now he understood for a fact that Shiro would never hurt anyone. Especially not someone he was trying to befriend.

 

Against his previous assumptions of danger in Shiro’s presence, he wrapped his arms around his waist and pulled him in. He felt Shiro’s strong arms wrap around him in return, after a moment of obvious hesitation. Keith breathed in, the mixed smell of sandalwood cologne and pheromones washing over him. He almost felt like he did when he was starting to go into heat, with a strange longing deep inside him for something he didn’t recognize. But here, now, surrounded by people, he was beginning to suspect that the longing was for companionship. He was feeling it now, in Shiro’s arms. He didn’t want to admit that the longing might be for something a little more… personal. So, he refused to even give it a second thought. Companionship. That’s all he needed.

 

“I trust you, Shiro,” Keith said, squeezing ever so slightly tighter, “Please don’t make me regret it.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So fellas is it gay to smell another dude and get a boner or

**Author's Note:**

> Ayyyy please leave comments if you have anything nice to say. Constructive criticism is 100% welcome as are requests or general comments about the story. <3


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